


Sandcastle

by HoloXam



Category: Rusty Quill Gaming (Podcast)
Genre: Canon Compliant, Fluff, Friendship, Gen, Love, Pre-Paris arc Zolf & Sasha, and about Sasha, but Zolf's feelings about character moments, not exactly missing scenes
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-28
Updated: 2020-07-28
Packaged: 2021-03-06 00:34:13
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 575
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25574404
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/HoloXam/pseuds/HoloXam
Summary: The first time Zolf thinksI love youwith regards to Sasha there is no grand gesture or life-or-death rescue situation.
Relationships: Sasha Racket & Zolf Smith
Comments: 17
Kudos: 61





	Sandcastle

**Author's Note:**

> This was supposed to be angst, but it's not. I refuse.

* * *

He doesn't yet realise that he loves her when he pulls her out of the rubble from the exploded shed in other London and panics because she's missing a finger. She's complaining about the pain, and the relation is too new and unfamiliar for him to see it for what it is, and, anyway, they have a captive and a dog and Bertie to deal with, so when he's satisfied that she isn't actively bleeding out on him, it's onwards, onwards, upwards, and out of there. 

* * *

On the train to Dover, Sasha gets absolutely hammered on the free wine, and Zolf has to restrain himself in order not to fuss as the combination of the train's motion and Sasha’s own overindulgence takes her from slurring and laughing to groaning with her head between her knees. 

Feeling an odd pang in his chest, he summons a glass of water and rubs her back awkwardly. When she mumbles a “Thanks, Zolf,” he feels slightly dizzy himself. 

He blames the wine he hasn't had a drop of. 

* * *

He doesn't realise that he loves her when he chucks his armor and trident into the sea and dives headfirst into the frothing waves after her, screaming at Poseidon not to take her. Suspended under water, there's an extended moment of "What am I even doing with my life?" but then he catches sight of a studded leather jacket, and dismisses that particular existential crisis. Everything after that happens so fast, and when they finally get a hold of each other, all he can think of is getting her and Hamid to the shore, safe and sound. 

As they fall asleep on the sand, exhausted, he swears to himself to protect them, no matter the consequences to his own person. 

* * *

The first time Zolf thinks _I love you_ with regards to Sasha there is no grand gesture or life-or-death rescue situation.

It's prompted by the way her face lights up over the automatic cars, by her infectious joy. By her conceptualisation of the engine and tiny sparky horses. When their ride blows up, Sasha is yelling with excitement, and Zolf does not _actually_ care that they're going to be late to Calais or if they are going to lose the bet with Bertie: Sasha’s eyes are shining at him, she's grinning and alive and her hair is fluffy from the wind and the salt. They're on the road, just the two of them, and he grins back at her, feeling oddly light and free. 

As they ride the rest of the way to Calais in the back of the vegetable cart, Sasha chatting away with their speed-demon of an old lady, Zolf smiles to himself, basking in the relief of being alive, and the warm, open feeling in his chest. Sasha looks at him and smiles. 

“Alright, Zolf?” she asks, leaning over a pile of carrots for a moment as they're thrown together at a bend in the road. 

_I love you,_ he thinks. Surprised at the thought, he halts himself for a moment, frowning, chewing on the sentiment. Then he shrugs and thinks, _yeah, alright. I love you._

“Yeah, all good,” he tells her. Around the bend in the road, they come out by a field where a few cows are standing around. Zolf points them out to her and tries his best not to melt from the way her eyes widen in excitement. 

He's almost sad to reach Calais. 

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading! 
> 
> If you want to Behold me, I'm on tumblr (holoxam) and twitter (holoxam). :)

**Works inspired by this one:**

  * [Sandcastle [podfic]](https://archiveofourown.org/works/26256241) by [KD reads (KDHeart)](https://archiveofourown.org/users/KDHeart/pseuds/KD%20reads)




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